The Americal Division Veterans Association

Hostile Fire by Philip Bigler 1996 Published by Vandamere Press, A Division of AB Associates; P.O. Box 5243, Arlington, VA 22205

Review by Gary L. Noller

An enemy rocket exploded in the midst of the 312th Evacuation Hospital on the morning of June 8, 1969. 1LT Sharon Lane was killed instantly in the attack. She thus became the first and only woman killed in the Vietnam war as a result of direct enemy action.

The 312th Evac was located in Chu Lai near the Americal Division headquarters. Its neat and utilitarian buildings were situated on the craggy bluffs above the South China Sea. The 312th was a stateside reserve unit sent to Vietnam to render aid to the most seriously wounded. Once the wounded were stabilized and able to be moved, they were transferred to hospitals outside of Vietnam.

1LT Lane, a native of Canton, OH, chose to be an Army nurse and volunteered to go to Vietnam. She was diligent in her duties and proved herself to be up to the arduous demands of the combat zone.

In Hostile Fire, Philip Bigler does an outstanding job of detailing the activities of Lane and other hospital personnel. He taps a variety of resources to include the letters that Sharon sent home as well as personal accounts of those that served with her.

Amy Lazar of Kansas City, Mo. was a Red Cross social worker at the 312th at the time of Lane's death. Lazar kept a personal journal that was cited several times in the book. Lazar was jolted from her bed by the impacting rocket and suffered cuts and bruises.

First person accounts such as Lazar's show the uniqueness and importance of the work performed by Sharon Lane and her co-workers. Ironically, Lane was tending to the needs of sick and injured Vietnamese civilians when the enemy rocket took her life.

Bigler gives a good description of the history of the development of Chu Lai as a prominent U.S. military base. Hostile Fire includes several pages of pictures and maps that will be of interest to Americal veterans.

This book is a must read for those who desire a better understanding of all facets of the Vietnam war. It provides a fine detail of the sacrifices that were required of those whose mission it was to care for the casualties of war.

For more reading material related to the Americal Division, there's the Army's Official History of the division and additional bibliographical information.